Results 1 to 8 of 8
  1. #1
    Join Date
    Aug 2014
    Location
    Perth, Western Australia
    Posts
    46

    Default Woodworking in Japan

    I decided it might be of the interest of others here if I wrote about my experience of doing woodworking classes and shopping in Japan.

    I am from Perth and fairly new to woodworking but I really improved my hand woodworking skills by attending some hand tool woodworking classes in Japan mid this year. I chose to do this as I have a keen interest in woodworking and a lot of Japanese woodworking is quite hand tool oriented.

    I went to Tokyo, Japan in July-August and made some arrangements to do some Edo sashimono style box making classes at Mokko Kukan Rin rental wood shop (http://www.mokko-kukan-rin.com or http://www.facebook.com/mokkokukanrin) located at Tokyo in Chiba prefecture Funabashi city, Takanedai.

    My instructor was the owner of the rental wood shop Miyazu-san. They had other projects you could build, however the sashimono box was ideal as it was something that was small enough to take back home easily and the build involved using more hand tools.

    Miyazu-san is a woodworker that uses both power tools and hand tools, but he is very knowledgable about hand tools and was able to answer all my questions on using them correctly.

    DSC00947.JPG by raptor_tk, on Flickr

    The box I made was part of the "Lets make it together (isshou ni tsukurou)" one on one classes which costed 10,000 yen (about $110AU~) for the entire 3 days. So it was very cheap considering most of the work was done by hand tools.

    DSC03956.JPG by raptor_tk, on Flickr

    I believe that the build is considered basic woodworking techniques, but for people new to hand woodworking and especially Japanese tools, it is a good introduction to accurate measuring and the correct usage of various hand tools.

    Below are a number of hand tools I worked with:
    • Japanese chisels (Nomi)
    • Detail saw (Doutsuki nokogiri)
    • Japanese planes and hammer (Kanna and Gennou)
    • Japanese corner plane (Mentori kanna)
    • Square, ruler & caliper
    • Japanese marking knife (Shiragaki)
    • Japanese marking gauge (Kebiki)


    Below are some images of the tools I used:
    Japanese plane
    DSC03936.JPG by raptor_tk, on Flickr

    Marking gauge
    DSC03934.JPG by raptor_tk, on Flickr

    Corner plane
    DSC00961.JPG by raptor_tk, on Flickr

    Detail saw and measuring tools
    DSC03945.JPG by raptor_tk, on Flickr

    Miyazu-san was very patient and he was able to demonstrate each step of the process in the box building and how to adjust and use all of the tools. The class did need some knowledge of Japanese language which I do have, however he mentioned he has taught other foreigners before by demonstration without too many issues.

    I have to admit I didn't take a lot of photos of the classes as I was quite busy working on the box, but the photo below is an example of my work halfway through the build.

    DSC03933.JPG by raptor_tk, on Flickr

    We did end up using a trimmer router in a router table for one part of the build which was to make some grooves for the bottom of the box to hold the box bottom and also to cut the box lid from the base of the box.

    He also advised me the best place to buy Japanese tools in Tokyo which is a shop called Naohei in Hachoubori (also in Tokyo). He made a list of essential tool and this store was able to supply all of the Japanese tools I needed.

    DSC04687.JPG by raptor_tk, on Flickr

    Naohei is a store for professional woodworkers and seems to be one of the must visit places for many Japanese woodworkers.

    From my first impressions of it, I couldn't tell what kind of store it was. It didn't look like a woodworking store and there was no indication of it from the outside.

    The store is very small and cramped. The woodworking tools are hidden in the back. You should ask for "Mokkou dougu" to be directed to them. It is best if you ask them for what you are looking for using Japanese names or give them a list so they can dig them out for you.

    From googling about the store later on, some Japanese woodworkers do state that they do have some expensive handmade tools too. Unfortunately the store does not have an online shop.

    DSC04690.JPG by raptor_tk, on Flickr

    They also accepted credit card payment for those planning on a shopping spree there.

    I was able to walk out with all my Japanese tools shopping done at one place. I wish I could go back there to buy more tools!

    I hope my experience was an enjoyable read. Feel free to ask any questions or for details on how to book a class there or how to find Naohei. I'll be happy to translate or help with booking a class there for anyone interested.

  2. # ADS
    Google Adsense Advertisement
    Join Date
    Always
    Location
    Advertising world
    Posts
    Many





     
  3. #2
    Join Date
    Jun 2007
    Location
    Austin, TX
    Posts
    159

    Default

    Sounds like a lot of productive fun. One question: why is a corner plane called a corner plane? Any chance you'd like to post a head on bottom view?

    Pam

  4. #3
    Join Date
    Aug 2014
    Location
    Perth, Western Australia
    Posts
    46

    Default

    Good question. I simply gave it the name corner plane as it's more understandable but it's proper name is mentori kanna. It is used to plane down corners and has two fences to guide it. In this case it was to plane the corners to a 45 degree angle although planes with other angles such as 30 degree do exist. The depth of the cut is also adjustable by adjusting the space between the fence. I used it for the inside corners of the bottom of the base of the box. I was told that small not easily noticeable details like this is common in Edo sashimono.

    I didn't take a photo of the bottom but I found a photo online that shows a mentori kanna from a few angles. I have one of these kanna on the way from Japan as I plan to make another one of these boxes but using Jarrah instead.
    3636_3.jpg

  5. #4
    Join Date
    Jun 2007
    Location
    Austin, TX
    Posts
    159

    Default

    Thanks, raptor. I've seen the "corner plane" description several times in the last few months, had no idea; but it appears to be what I've seen called an adjustable chamfer plane.

    Why do you need another one for jarrah? Different bedding angle? You plan on the jarrah killing it?

    Pam

  6. #5
    Join Date
    Aug 2014
    Location
    Perth, Western Australia
    Posts
    46

    Default

    I see, adjustable chamfer plane does sound like the perfect name for it

    I actually don't own one (yet!), as the one I used last time belonged to the woodworking workshop I was making the box at.

    I forgot to buy one when I was in Japan, so I have placed an order for one along with a few other obscure planes I haven't used before such as a kiwawaki kanna (adjustable rabbet plane), kikaijakuriganna (adjustable groove plane), nagadai kanna (jointer plane) and a nankyou kanna (spokeshave).

    As a side discussion, has anyone got experience using any of these planes before and how they compare to western equivalents?

    I also decided on the kiwawaki kanna (adjustable rabbet plane) over a set of left and right regular kiwa kanna (rabbet plane with skewed blade) as the kiwa kanna didn't have an adjustable fence and you need both a left and right skewed blade one if you want to plane in the direction of the grain but the adjustable one has blades on both sides so you don't need two.

    My guess is the kiwa kanna is a more traditional one and the kiwawaki one is a recent type of plane.

    For reference, here is a photo of a kiwa kanna (only a "right" direction one shown):
    d410483.jpg

    and this is a kiwawaki kanna:
    51Yn1LSMY5L._SX300_.jpg71yn11KeNmL._SL1032_.jpg

    If anyone knows any benefits of the kiwa kanna over the other one then it would be helpful to know.

    I was tempted about the different bedding angle for the mentori kanna (adjustable chamfer plane), but just decided on the regular 45 degrees one.
    I really hope the Jarrah doesn't kill it! :P

  7. #6
    Join Date
    Apr 2007
    Location
    Adelaide Hills, South Australia
    Posts
    4,311

    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by raptor View Post

    As a side discussion, has anyone got experience using any of these planes before and how they compare to western equivalents?

    I have used both a Japanese nankyou kanna and western spokeshaves.

    I prefer the feel of some western style spokeshaves in my hand; very old wooden ones with low angle carbon steel
    blades.

    Don't like my Stanley or Kunz
    spokeshaves very much.

    I have only one
    nankyou kanna, from Fujihisa; it has good steel.

    Also consider Terry Gordon's spokeshaves that are made in the eastern style, see here.

    The limit of the eastern design is that they don't come in a low angle option, but if you are working with
    hard woods the high angles are not so much of an issue. And, reversing the blade in a Gordon also give you a scraping angle.

    Also explore with Stu from Tools From Japan what he can supply. I can't see any
    nankyou on his site, but he does have a chamfer plane listed, see here.

    Neil



  8. #7
    Join Date
    Aug 2014
    Location
    Perth, Western Australia
    Posts
    46

    Thumbs up

    Quote Originally Posted by NeilS View Post
    I have used both a Japanese nankyou kanna and western spokeshaves.

    I prefer the feel of some western style spokeshaves in my hand; very old wooden ones with low angle carbon steel
    blades.

    Don't like my Stanley or Kunz
    spokeshaves very much.

    I have only one
    nankyou kanna, from Fujihisa; it has good steel.

    Also consider Terry Gordon's spokeshaves that are made in the eastern style, see here.

    The limit of the eastern design is that they don't come in a low angle option, but if you are working with
    hard woods the high angles are not so much of an issue. And, reversing the blade in a Gordon also give you a scraping angle.

    Also explore with Stu from Tools From Japan what he can supply. I can't see any
    nankyou on his site, but he does have a chamfer plane listed, see here.

    Neil


    Thanks for the info about the nankyou kanna. I haven't had much experience using them before, so I'll be looking at trying it out when mine arrives. The Gordon spokeshaves look very impressive.

    The Tools From Japan website is really good. Thanks for mentioning it. They do have limited stock and prices are little bit more expensive than what normal shops charge in Japan, but given they've researched and stock the better tools, I think it is worth the little extra.

    Tim.

  9. #8
    Join Date
    Nov 2016
    Location
    Japan
    Age
    42
    Posts
    1

    Default

    Hi Raptor, i'm not sure if you're still active on this post, but i came across it when searching for a way to learn traditional japanese woodwork. It seems the workshop you went to is no longer operating unfortunately. Any ideas how i can pursue this? I really appreciated your post and would greatly appreciate any further advice, thanks!

Similar Threads

  1. where to go in Japan?
    By mimpi in forum HINTS & TIPS
    Replies: 12
    Last Post: 17th June 2012, 11:38 PM
  2. Greetings from Japan
    By Stu in Tokyo in forum CNC Machines
    Replies: 31
    Last Post: 4th July 2009, 04:14 PM
  3. Only in Japan
    By Wongo in forum WOODIES JOKES
    Replies: 1
    Last Post: 12th July 2007, 08:04 PM
  4. Woodworking stores in Kobe, Japan
    By sam63 in forum WOODWORK - GENERAL
    Replies: 4
    Last Post: 7th August 2006, 10:28 AM
  5. Japan
    By MikeK in forum NOTHING AT ALL TO DO WITH WOODWORK
    Replies: 8
    Last Post: 25th June 2005, 08:30 AM

Tags for this Thread

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •